Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has said the federal government is committed to the rescue of Leah Sharibu, one of the schoolgirls abducted by Boko Haram in Dapchi, Yobe State.

Leah Sharibu and President Buhari

Osinbajo spoke on Sunday during a town hall meeting with some Nigerians in New York, United States.

The Vice President stressed that over 108 girls had been rescued so far, noting that community policing could effectively tackle the nation’s security challenges, including kidnappings.

“There are cases that are as important as other cases that have received worldwide attention. But at the same time, when you measure it against the performance of girls that have been freed till date, over 108 Christian girls.

“We shouldn’t say it’s Christian religious freedom, but who is responsible for kidnapping is committing an economic crime. To solve the problem, we need community police, we need the state police,” he said.

Osinbajo also reacted to questions asked by diaspora Nigerians on poverty and unemployment in the country.

He lamented that the country recorded a population of 112.7 million people living in extreme poverty in 2010, claiming that the government during that period did not create Social Investment Programmes that will help ameliorate the situation.

“As at 2010, Nigeria had about 112.7million people living in extreme poverty. Nothing in place, there was no Social Investment Programme, there was no social security, no way of taking people out of poverty.

“That was the reason we decided to put in place the National Social Investment Programme because it was to address questions of how to get our people out of poverty,” Osinbajo said.